Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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513. To ask the Minister for Health if queries raised in correspondence by a person (details supplied) regarding the Roadmap for Reopening Society and Business and property industry protocols will be addressed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8301/20]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Government’s Roadmap for Reopening Society & Business, published on 1 May 2020, sets out an indicative path to the easing of COVID 19 restrictions and other actions in order to facilitate the reopening Ireland’s society and economy in a phased manner. The Roadmap specifies that decisions in relation to which actions will be taken and which public health measures might be lifted will be made in accordance with the Framework for Future Decision-Making which is as follows:

1. Before each Government consideration of the easing of restrictions, the Department of Health will provide a report to the Government regarding the following on/off trigger criteria: 

a. The latest data regarding the progression of the disease, 

b. The capacity and resilience of the health service in terms of hospital and ICU occupancy,

c. The capacity of the programme of sampling, testing and contact tracing,

d. The ability to shield and care for at risk groups,

e. An assessment of the risk of secondary morbidity and mortality as a consequence of the restrictions.

2. It will also provide risk-based public health advice on what measures could be modified in the next period.

3. The Government would then consider what restrictions could be lifted, having regard to the advice of the Department of Health as well as other social and economic considerations, e.g. the potential for increased employment, relative benefits for citizens and businesses, improving national morale and wellbeing etc.

4. It is acknowledged that there is also an ongoing possibility that restrictions could be re-imposed and this process will be carried out on an ongoing basis once every 3 weeks.

As is clear from the framework, it is the Government rather than I or my Department that will decide on any modifications to the current public health measures in place and those decisions will be informed by the status of the on/off trigger criteria and the public health advice received at the time that a decision is being made.

On 9 May the “Return to Work Safely Protocol - COVID-19 Specific National Protocol for Employers and Workers” was published. It provides clear guidance to employers and to workers on the measures that must be taken to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace. The Protocol was developed through the cooperation of the Health and Safety Authority, the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation, the HSE and my Department. It is designed to be used by all workplaces to adapt their procedures and practices to provide protection against the threat of COVID-19.

In general, with the exception of public health advice, the responsibility for providing guidance in relation to a particular sector of our economy or on a specific activity remains with the Government Department with responsibility for that sector or activity. The Department of Justice and Equality is responsible for property services regulation.

Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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514. To ask the Minister for Health the steps he is taking to ensure that non-Covid-19 related cases and-or treatments and other delayed medical procedures are being accommodated in the private hospitals that have been utilised by the public health system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8304/20]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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In response to the Covid-19 pandemic the HSE had to take measures to defer all non-urgent elective scheduled care activity, including outpatient clinics. This was to ensure patient safety and that all appropriate resources were made available for Covid-19 related activity and time-critical essential work. This decision was in line with the advice issued by the World Health Organisation, and the National Action Plan published on 16 March. The trajectory of the disease means there is now an opportunity for increasing the provision of non-covid care including more routine care.

The National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) has approved a number of recommendations relating to protecting and maximising the delivery of essential time-critical non-Covid-19 care alongside Covid-19 care. On 5 May, NPHET agreed that its recommendation of 27 March, in regard to the pausing of all non-essential health services should be replaced, in relation to acute care, with a recommendation that delivery of acute care be determined by appropriate clinical and operational decision making.

Guidance on patient pathways to mitigate the risks associated with the delivery of non-covid care, for patients and healthcare workers, and support safe delivery of care has been developed under the auspices of the Expert Advisory Subgroup of NPHET (EAG) and approved in principle by NPHET.  

The HSE advise that preliminary figures show that as of 25th May, 7,605 patients had been discharged from private hospitals having undergone an inpatient procedure since the arrangement between the HSE and private hospitals came into force. In the same period 26,007 daycase procedures took place in private hospitals, as well as 35,073 diagnostic appointments and 20,407 outpatient appointments.

Under the terms agreed with the hospitals, provision has been made to ensure continuity of care for patients who were in a private hospital or receiving a course of treatment when the arrangement was agreed. These patients will be treated as public patients and will be prioritised based on clinical needs, as with any other public patient.